[WriterHead]

legit question,

why do they make the cable really short? Did hifiman design them to be marketed to casual music listeners at large in mind?
Like, designed them to be used with an LG or a Samsung cellphone in mind ?
because there is no way in heck that the he-400i is a "portable headphone"...

1.2 meter is excessively short

I use it all the time doing household chores with the Fiio X3II in my pocket, so I would prefer an even shorter and not rigid cable.

 

[rovopio]

I use it all the time doing household chores with the Fiio X3II in my pocket, so I would prefer an even shorter and not rigid cable.

 


they can give 2 or 3 cables. if Sony can do that with their $200 headphone, i don't see why hifiman can't with their $500 headphone

 

[Robert777]

   
On that topic, I have actually managed to compare my 400i to the Ether on the same setup - this was with a Schiit Ragnarok and Yggdrasil combo at SoCal CanJam. When I compared the two, the 400i actually stood its own against the Ether - sure, the Ether was definitely better, but the 400i was actually not far behind. It was quite impressive to me, to say the least, that a $500 headphone could go against a $1500 headphone and not embarrass itself.

I have to keep reminding myself of this, and the law of diminishing returns.
I always lust after the most expensive, and in my mind therefore best, that I could possibly buy.
I have to have the most expensive headphones or the most expensive pair of handmade in England leather shoes.
I have to research for weeks to get the best new phone or the best new laptop.
The reality is that I was listening to my JVC HA-RX700 headphones the other day and I loved them.
I am not sure if it is my source, the quality of the music I listen to, mostly 80's punk rock, drone metal and Tom Waits and Nick Cave, or my ears but they sounded 80% as good as my beloved TH900's.
I could most likely be forever satisfied with the 400i's but I will always want the Ether's or the next best headphone.
I may have deep rooted psychological problems.
 
Cheers.

 

[DavidA]

   
On that topic, I have actually managed to compare my 400i to the Ether on the same setup - this was with a Schiit Ragnarok and Yggdrasil combo at SoCal CanJam. When I compared the two, the 400i actually stood its own against the Ether - sure, the Ether was definitely better, but the 400i was actually not far behind. It was quite impressive to me, to say the least, that a $500 headphone could go against a $1500 headphone and not embarrass itself.

Thanks for this comment, my wallet is sleeping well tonight.

 

[swspiers]

 
I have to keep reminding myself of this, and the law of diminishing returns.
I always lust after the most expensive, and in my mind therefore best, that I could possibly buy.
I have to have the most expensive headphones or the most expensive pair of handmade in England leather shoes.
I have to research for weeks to get the best new phone or the best new laptop.
The reality is that I was listening to my JVC HA-RX700 headphones the other day and I loved them.
I am not sure if it is my source, the quality of the music I listen to, mostly 80's punk rock, drone metal and Tom Waits and Nick Cave, or my ears but they sounded 80% as good as my beloved TH900's.
I could most likely be forever satisfied with the 400i's but I will always want the Ether's or the next best headphone.
I may have deep rooted psychological problems.
 
Cheers.

The Primes, 400i's, Grado 225i's, and Benchmark DAC1 cured me of these symptoms...

 

[gopanthersgo1]

If I were to upgrade from my Aune T1 for my HE-400is, what would I get, O2 + ODAC or something else? I'd spend up to ~$300 on the amp and probs ~$200 on the DAC, separate purchases.

EDIT: Cable upgrades are eh to me but what about alternative earpads?

 

[rovopio]

If I were to upgrade from my Aune T1 for my HE-400is, what would I get, O2 + ODAC or something else? I'd spend up to ~$300 on the amp and probs ~$200 on the DAC, separate purchases.

EDIT: Cable upgrades are eh to me but what about alternative earpads?

 
use the DAC on the T1 and get a $300 amps... or $400 or $500...
Your aune T1 DAC is sufficient, and unique because the tube introduce distortion from the tube on the DAC signal path (i think...?). I'm just relaying info I remember from my own research on the T1...

 

[manbear]

If I were to upgrade from my Aune T1 for my HE-400is, what would I get, O2 + ODAC or something else? I'd spend up to ~$300 on the amp and probs ~$200 on the DAC, separate purchases.

EDIT: Cable upgrades are eh to me but what about alternative earpads?

What are you looking for?

I really like my NuForce HA-200 with the 400i, it warms the headphone up just short of being lush. You may want something different. 

You could try the Focus A pads or mod the Focus pads. Look into the Jerg mods. Grill mod makes a positive change too IMO. 

 

[Hifi59]

I've been using my new 400i's for a week or so now. Compared to the 560's that I have, I find them to be not to far behind the, in sound signature.
The extra mid bass,along with a high end not quite as extended as the 560's, can lend a somewhat muffled sound and closed soundstage to the 400i's.
I ordered a Cardas cable from a guy who makes them to order on eBay. I've connected it to the 400's and all I got to say is Wow!
The Cardas totally transformed these phones to sound much much closer to the 560's! That muffled mid bass is near gone and highs now come across a bit
more pronounced making these phones sounding quite neutral like their big brother. As I switch between the 560's with stock cable and the 400's with the Cardas
I can say that I would not argue with someone who wasn't sure which one he likes better. I still prefer the 560's, but they are very close now.
So how does the 560 sound with the Cardas cable? It is a bit brighter but still sounds great. I will update as I listen more over the next few days.

 

[Hardtrancing]

Hello

I have been lurking on this thread for a long time, but I am still no closer to a decision about getting the HE-400i. Since there are absolutely 0 Hifiman dealers in Denmark I have to rely on the Head-Fi'ers expertise.

My problem is mostly in regards to how people have been describing the bass, some seem to think it is very good, while others think it is not present at all.
It is a bit confusing to me.
 
So can anyone compare it to the DT990's? Since those are some I have actually heard. I liked the bass on them though they were a tad boomy, I think I would be fine with slightly less.
The high was what turned me off about the 990's they were too metallic sounding to me.
 
Also I will be using headphones for gaming and listening to electronic music (Drum & Bass, Hardstyle, Hardtrance, so on).
 
I hope some of you could help me out.
Cheers

 

[Tunkejazz]

Hello


I have been lurking on this thread for a long time, but I am still no closer to a decision about getting the HE-400i. Since there are absolutely 0 Hifiman dealers in Denmark I have to rely on the Head-Fi'ers expertise.


My problem is mostly in regards to how people have been describing the bass, some seem to think it is very good, while others think it is not present at all.
It is a bit confusing to me.

So can anyone compare it to the DT990's? Since those are some I have actually heard. I liked the bass on them though they were a tad boomy, I think I would be fine with slightly less.
The high was what turned me off about the 990's they were too metallic sounding to me.

Also I will be using headphones for gaming and listening to electronic music (Drum & Bass, Hardstyle, Hardtrance, so on).

I hope some of you could help me out.
Cheers

i think the confusing part is that people always seem to.compare them with the older he400 which have a very strong bass. But the 400i have a nice bass presence IMHO. The bonus here is that the upper end is very sweet.

 

[manbear]

I used to own the DT-990. I dont think you will be dissapointed in the HE-400i. It has a little less bass quantity than the DT-990, but much tighter and deeper. The highs on the 400i are much better.

 

[Semont]

Just use an EQ on them since the bass quality is good. It's providing pretty good results for me just by increasing a couple frequencies at the low end by a 3-4 decibels each.

 

[Hardtrancing]

Thanks for your input.
 
It seems I might have to just take the plunge with them, when I have scraped some cash together.

Bonus questions:
Have any of you tried them with a modmic 4.0? And if so does it pick up the sound leakage?
As for amplification I am thinking about just using it directly in my laptop as a start, but will get an amp/DAC later. Will an Audio-GD NFB 11 or 15 be sufficient?

 

[Tunkejazz]

Thanks for your input.

It seems I might have to just take the plunge with them, when I have scraped some cash together.


Bonus questions:

Have any of you tried them with a modmic 4.0? And if so does it pick up the sound leakage?

As for amplification I am thinking about just using it directly in my laptop as a start, but will get an amp/DAC later. Will an Audio-GD NFB 11 or 15 be sufficient?

Your laptop should just give enough volume. But in my case, I felt that the low end drive at all volumes improved with a dedicated amp. With my macbook pro the sound is a bit soft in the bass and less dynamic overall.

I have an Ifi nano iDSD, and even that gives a significant improvement over the laptop output.